[64' Rivera Floor Braces]

Guys, you two have made me feel a ton better about my restoration project. You 2 are really bringing a car back from the dead so to speak. Most people will never appreciate the work you did or even know what the hell you were talking about if you explained it to them, but some of us do. I know a lot of guys rescue cars, but you guys are rescuing a couple that likely would have been scrapped or tagged as donor vehicles. Very impressive. Mine was probably walking that line itself. Well, understand that some of us do know how much work that is an appreciate what went into it. You are basically remaking a significant portion of the car yourself, which separates you from a great many of the other car guys. I am totally down with the direction you guys are going. Being a former marine there is something appealing about making something work, especially when it maybe shouldn't.

 

keep charging,

 

- Jeff

[64' Rivera Floor Braces]

Outstanding job Brad. I found myself having to do a little fab on those braces also, but mine only had to have a few sections to replace. Much less extensive than your repairs. Was this car run up north or on the coasts? It looks like it rusted from the underneath side rather than from the inside out as mine did. My car had been sitting outside for many years and lost the window seals at which point it starting collecting water in the floors and the trunk.

 

-Jeff

[For those who keep talking about needing welding practice]

I started learning last year. Luckily, i work out of a wrecker yard that has a 4 bay shop with lifts. There are plenty of salvage hoods, doors, and even structural pieces to practice on. That being said, All that practice didn't help as much as i thought it would. As Ttotired said, welding car panels that have any amount of rust changes things immensely. The welder finds rust you never even knew existed by blowing holes through it. The panel may look fine from the front, but the back side could be partially chewed up. I learned through most of my mistakes on the car. Fortunately, there isn't much you can't fix with a grinder and cutting wheel and do over with more metal and welding. I learned on the job with a snap on muscle mig 250. I found i like fabricating so much that i got myself a shot bag, some metal forming tools, a plasma cutter, and a hobart ironman 230 so i can work on projects at home.

 

I know you listed weldingtips and tricks as a good site, and i agree. My favorite guy to watch weld that i have found so far is ChuckE2009 and his youtube channel. He does a wide variety of welding, goes through some of the machines a bit, and has some interesting projects.

[How many are left]

I have no idea how many are nationwide, but i know in my neck of the woods they didn't start springing up until the last few years. Either someone found some cars hiding in a barn or they were imports. I honestly don't remember seeing one from 1980 to 2005, ever...in person at least. In the last few years i have seen 3.

 

-Jeff

[cragar s/s fitting]

Thanks for all the info fellas. So it sounds like the spacer may help on the backspacing a bit. I'm going to take a look at the rivets again to see what you're talking about there. I was aware of the center possibly being an issue, but i think clearing the fins should not be. If it is then i will just convert the front drum brakes to disc. That's on the list of upgrades at some point anyway. I'm just tying to eliminate 15 trips back and forth or making plans for something that won't even work.

[cragar s/s fitting]

I'm not sure why i would need a spacer. Could you elaborate?

[cragar s/s fitting]

Has anyone fit cragar ss wheels on a 1st gen? I ask because i can get a heck of a deal on a set through a buddy who works as a mechanic at Pep Boys. The rally wheels i am running currently are shot with rust and scale. I descaled one by immersion in a tank of washing soda and the use of a battery charger. The good news is that all the scale disappeared. The bad - well, they don't seal now. Too much material lost. Here is my best guess as to what i am hoping will fit:

 

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/crr-610p775042/overview/

 

610P775042 is the part number. Is there anything i need to watch out for in fitting/ordering? These will have to be special order through pep boys i am sure. but i think the discount will make it worth it.

 

thanks in advance,

 

- Jeff

[For this with aftermarket wheels (first gen)]

Matt, there is a reason the torq thrusts are popular. It's a clean look. As to originality and having something diferent...well just owning a 64 riviera that is in driver shape would put you in the oddball class i would think. That being said, i do really like the look on your blue car...wheels and stance.

[Jeff Hayes '64 Interior Pictures]

CTX what were the issues with your eldorado seats again? I am asking because that is only a couple of things away on mine and i'd like to get a jump on it. My rears are getting refinished, but the fronts were garbage and not salvagable. Basically the fronts were submerged in water and the base of the seats were trashed. If i recall right you said you might have to cut a channel for the seat motors?

[My 64 Riv project]

Ok, so a couple of days ago i left the trunk and started working on the passenger rear quarter again. i thought i had taken care of the worst of it and just had a couple touch ups to do. The bad news....well after some sanding i ended up replacing the bottom of the quarter and the inner portion due to water damage and craptastic body work done before me. It had apparently had serious rust issues before and the bod guy screwed a piece of metal over the top of it and formed the curve with nothing but bondo. The good news was that i ddn't bother sanding down all the bondo and i am just replacing it with metal. I'm done with the back side and tomorrow i should be able to get on to the front side and forming the outer curve/edge. I'm sure i will have to use a little body filler and glazing putty, but i bet i will reduce it by 90% of what they had on there previously.

 

 

- Jeff

 

[My 64 Riv project]

Been a while since i updated this. I finally got around to finishing the trunk. I sanded it down, prepped it, patched small holes and seams with por patch, then layed down 2 coats of por 15 silver. It looks a lot better than before. I then hit the whole trunk with rustoleum flat black after scuffing the por 15. All in all i am pleased with the results, especially since it will be getting carpet over it anyway. This was practice for the outside of the car for me and experimenting wiith the por 15 a bit. The por patch was pretty dang handy. I used duct tape as a backing on the underside and coated the inside with por patch, then pulled the tape off the next day. Worked like a charm.

 

 

- Jeff

[Finally 1965 Riviera done]

Very nice. Black is never a bad car color. Was thinking of going saddle interior for mine.

[1963 Riviera Custom Fast Back.]

i don't care for it, but the level of craftsmanship is astounding. I wish i had half the talent of the crew that put together.

[Jeff Hayes '64 Interior Pictures]

Yes, i would love to see those as well. Hell, i would like to see or hear about anyone changing out their seats for something else. I'm almost to the point of working the interior and was looking at getting some seats to mess with prior to painting the interior.

[best solvent for removing old seam sealer?]

Well i found that a pressure washer is about the best damn thing for removing old seam sealer. Pressure washer with degreaser made pretty quick work of what i was wanting to get. Used a gallon of purple power and got all the seam sealer and even some rust i was having a hard time getting to. Unfortunately, rain got me before i could do the next step and hit it with the metal prep, but that is what stage i am on now. I have all the outside metal work done and just need to metal prep and paint the trunk and interior, then a little body filler work on my fabbed patch panels and rear wheelwells. The pressure washer was also real good at getting rid of the undercoating on the wheel wells so i could insure i had all the rust in check.

I found a neat product called por patch to fill some pitted spots and various pinholes in hard to reach places. It is like double thick por 15. Same rules apply - prep,prep,prep. Anything that sees the sun then has to be scuffed,tie-coated, then painted. I think i am going to slap spatter paint on the inside of the trunk after the tie coat. I'm stalled out for a week due to the weather, but then i should have a nice round of new pictures from the last month or two to get caught up.

I had done a poor job on the pans under the seats thinking i could lap weld them and cut off excess while it was up iinn the air on the rack. No such luck, so i had to cut all my welds and recut the body to butt weld the middle pans again. About a day or two setback on that, but at least now they are done what i would think is right. No excess.

[Aftermarket wheel question]

I know it may be too late for this to be a solution, but i ask so i don't run into the same problem. I was thinking of going to a similar route, but was leaning towards 17 inch rims. Would going with a larger rim bypass your issue?

[Replacement Floor Pans]

I used 6 of he c2c panels for the interior floor of my '64. The only problems i had were self-inflicted. I was pretty damn happy to at least have those. The rear quarters and inner fender wells i am having to fab by hand and it is a little time consuming. I think i purchased he c2c floorpans through rockauto and got them cheaper than buying them directly.

[Just bought me a 1963 Riviera. School me]

Ed, there are plenty of body parts reproduced. Unfortunately it is by hand and i doubt the guys who have fabbed them have given thought to doing it again. I know all the parts suppliers who used to make them decided there is no profit in doing so any more. I'm hoping it will come back a bit, but i am not holding my breath. A good metalworker would be worth his weight in gold on these early Rivieras.

[Daryl Starbird's 1967 Riviera]

The Starbird show was huge growing up. My dad took me every time it came to Oklahoma City. I was always amazed at what guys could fab up and dreamed of doing it myself someday.

[67 riv from Barrett Jackson]

That most definitely solves some ground clearance issues in the snow. I'm just lucky we don't get much of that in Oklahoma. I will say i didn't much care for the Riviera after 66, but i think my opinion is changing. It definitely is different and unique, and who could hate on a 430/455? Getting back to the original car, 400 hp unboosted is nothing to sneeze at and 900 hp is just nutty for driving around. It really has a look all it's own, and that is something i can smile about. Kind of sad if the guy sunk 50k into it only to try and get back 60k, but i hope someone drives the crap out of it and enjoys it because it looks like a ton of fun.

['64 Brake Booster]

Yea, i think i got mine at o'reilly's as well now that i think about it. I had redone the brake lines, all the brake pads/shoes, rebuilt the wheel cylinders, new master cylinder and i was still without brakes. So, that being the only thing i had not replaced i went ahead and did that as well. I think the diaphram was in about the same shape as any other rubber on the car, which means shot to hell. If it was rubber or an electrical connector it was crap on my car and needed to be replaced. The more i think about it, probably need to gut all the wiring and rewire it as well while i've got it mostly blown apart.

-Jeff

['64 Brake Booster]

I bought a brake booster last year, though i can't remember who from. I may have purchased it from OPGI while i was just trying to get it roadworthy.

-Jeff

[spot blaster experience?]

Sounds like a big thumbs down then. Thanks guys. I'll figure something out, but this probably means i have to get ready to paint a bit quicker then. On the plus side, that means i might actually at least have a finished section before the weather warms up again.\

Oh, and yea Ed, i had some rusty spots underneath, but i've taken care of the fabbing i needed to do under there. All i have left is reconstructing the inner portion of the wheelwell and the quarters. I did the welding/patching on the outside, but i have yet to get it up on the rack and finish from the inside out. I will likely do that before i paint the trunk. I had a moment of idiocy and ordered some welding wire via amazon and got the wrong size spool, so i am in the process of transferring it off the small reel onto the big reel at the moment, then i will finish up. I was also waiting on my shop-mate to finish up some exhaust work so i can change the machine over to what i need for sheet metal, so i wasn't in a hurry.

I will be using filler on the trunk most likely, but over the top of the por 15. I want the por 15 to get directly to the metal where i can, then i am going to use filler and epoxy to take care of pinholes, larger holes, and irregular surfaces. I'm going to have to do some studying up on that before i do it to make sure on the timing. Some things need to go on when the por 15 is still tacky to get a good stick and i'm not sure how the all metal interacts. And yes, i have tubes of seam sealer plus a can if necessary.

[spot blaster experience?]

Ok, so here are some pics of the trunk area i am working on. The black areas are patches i welded in where the metal was bad, also some of the support structure underneath had to be patched/replaced. The black is temporary, just to stop rust until i get it all taken down and ready to paint. I still have some welding to do, but i am focusing on the trunk area getting ready for por 15 application.

Ok, so some explanation. All pics are taken looking down at the trunk from the license plate area. Left side, right side, mid(worst pitting), left nook behind license plate, right nook behind license plate. The right nook i experimented with everything i had, wire wheel, wire brush, dremel/stone, acid rust remover, and now i am thinking the speed blaster will be the way to go there. I am also thinking it will work fairly good on the pitting. I hope the pics help explain the situation a bit.

Yea, i know a whole trunk section would have been nice to weld in, but i did that to the entire interior and was trying to save what i had in the trunk and avoid more welding if i could. I could not avoid replacing a few sections and have one more section to take care of where the seam on the left wheelwell got rust eaten.I believe the por 15 is almost bulletproof and will work just fine. I did the gas tank with it and spilled a bit on the floor and damn, that stuff is difficult to get up is all i can say. Worse than bedliner by far if you don't get to it right away. i am pretty confident it will work great and turn out fine if i can get it prepped correctly.

thanks in advance,

-Jeff

[spot blaster experience?]

I appreciate the offer of a loaner Arnulfo, but i don't need too much of an excuse to buy a tool. I am more interested in people giving me the nod that yes, it will get me where i want to go or no, it won't. I will do my best to post pics tomorrow morning so people can see where i am at. I have experimented with a couple of rust removers, roloc wheels, 3 or 4 different types of wire wheels, a dremel with some of the same attachments, and probably a few things i am leaving out. I have not tried sand/glass spot blasting and from what i have seen that seems to be the correct tool for the job/area i am trying to finish up.

It is about getting rust out of confined areas. I can barely get a dremel into these areas with a small stone cone attachment. More of a light grinding attachment. It is tedious as hell, but it isn't about the time so much as about being ineffective. I can probably get it done with the dremel and stone, but it is going to take forever and seems like the wrong tool for the job. I also have some pitting in the middle of the trunk where i have leftover deposits from the rust remover that i wouldn't mind cleaning off. Wire wheels won't touch it, but i bet the speed blaster will. So anyway, i am trying to kill two birds with one stone here. #1 i need to remove the rust on both sides of the license plate area on the inside of the trunk where i canoot get a wire wheel in to take it off. Secondly, i am spot stripping leftover deposits in pittting on the trunk area, and third i would like to clean the seams up a bit better before attempting to degrease and prep them for por 15. I also foersee needing the spot blaster for the trunk channel and possibly the rear window deck(though i might be able to wire wheel it).

Anyway, thanks for the tips guys, I apologize for not posting pics of the areas i am messing with. It would have saved me a lot of explaining and going back and forth. Even after the pics i am sure there will be 5 different opinions on how to do it and what the "best" tool is. Honestly, if any idea comes up that works i will be more than willing to try it out. It is all experimentation at this point and i am learning. This is something i actuqally enjoy, so the time involved means nothing, but i would like to get better at it and have a better idea of what works best for each job.

thanks,

-Jeff